GEORGE TOWN, Jan 1 — A plan to build a 29-storey hostel to house an estimated 12,000 foreign workers in Kampung Bagan has got the local fishing communities along Teluk Kumbar and Gertak Sanggul worried.
The fishermen who called a press conference today expressed bewilderment about the late notice given to residents about the project, which they fear will flood their tiny seaside village with outsiders and possibly cause social problems.
Gertak Sanggul Fishermen Unit chief Datuk Chooi Sooi Kong said last week, the city council issued notices to inform residents of the project.
“We found out that the whole project involves three blocks of high-rise buildings — one commercial and one residential to compensate affected residents here and one to house foreign workers,” he said.
He said the fishermen and affected residents are not against the whole project but are strongly against the foreign workers’ hostel component.
“A total 623 units in the 29-storey block will be for foreign workers and this could potentially bring in close to 12,000 foreign workers to this area,” he said.
He said Teluk Kumbar and the adjacent Gertak Sanggul are mostly fishing villages with agricultural lands and aquaculture businesses and questioned the decision to construct a hostel for foreigners who would mostly work in factories.
“This is not a heavy industrial zone with big factories, this whole area is made up of fishing villages and farms so there was no justification to locate a foreign workers’ hostel here,” he said.
He added that the narrow roads leading into Teluk Kumbar and Gertak Sanggul that are already suffering from traffic gridlock during rush hour will worsen in future once the hostel is running.
“If the hostel is here, there will be factory buses coming into this area and causing more congestion here,” he said.
Teluk Kumbar fishermen unit chief Roslizan Ramli said the state government should consider the social and safety aspects of residents in the area before allowing a foreign workers’ hostel to be built there.
He added that there were also no reassurances that the foreign workers brought to live in the hostel are free from contagious diseases that could spread to residents.
A search on the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) website showed that the developer had submitted its application for planning permission on November 20, 2019.
The proposal was for three high-rise buildings on Lot 1435 and Lot 1437 along Lorong Gertak Sanggul.
The first block will be a 28-storey apartment consisting of a multi-storey carpark and 986 units of affordable housing, the second block is a 21-storey commercial building consisting of 200 units of duplex offices and the third block is a 29-storey building consisting of 623 units for foreign workers’ hostel.
A total 37 houses and a temple, the Qian Sui Gong, in the fishing village will be demolished to make way for the project that covers up to 13 acres of land.
When contacted, MBPP Mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang said the application for planning permission is still under consideration.
“We will look into all necessary aspects technically under the rules and regulations when processing the application and we will take into consideration the concerns raised by the residents,” he said.
